SULU – For the first time after twin suicide attacks in January at a Catholic cathedral in the largely Muslim province of Sulu, dozens of faithful Christian followers trooped to the church to hear mass again and witness the re-consecration of the Our Lady of Mount Carmel in the capital town of Jolo.
Archbishop Gabrielle Caccia, the Apostolic Nuncio to the Philippines, celebrated mass along with retired Orlando Cardinal Quevedo and Davao Archbishop Romulo Valles, Cotabato Archbishop Angelito Lampon, Zamboanga Archbishop Romulo Dela Cruz, and Marawi Bishop Edwin Dela Peña and other priests.
The Papal Nuncio and Catholic Church leaders also met with Sulu Governor Sakur Tan at the Notre Dame of Jolo College. Tan expressed his deep gratitude and thanked the Papal Nuncio for visiting Jolo.
“Your Excellency we are very glad that you visited and I join everybody in this elation. This will show to the whole world that this place is liveable, and displays strong bond of brotherhood and solidarity between Muslim and Christians in the province of Sulu,” he said.
The governor, an alumnus of Notre Dame, said: “I hope I would be able to set a good example to our youth to emulate.” The Papal Nuncio and Tan talked about peace, harmony and love and they agreed that there must be no talk about minorities, but brotherhood. “Religion is about brotherhood, let us think about coexistence,” Tan said.
The repairs and renovation on the cathedral were funded by the “Aid to the Church in Need,” a Vatican-recognized foundation, and other organizations.
The Islamic State in Iraq and Syria or ISIS claimed responsibility for the deadly twin blasts carried out by a pair of suicide bombers. ISIS, in a statement released by its Amaq News Agency, said the first bomber detonated an explosive belt, while the second attacker blew himself up outside the Our Lady of Mount Carmel Cathedral and killing and wounding dozens of people, including soldiers deployed in the area.
The Long War Journal also reported that ISIS described its target in Jolo as a “Christian temple,” saying that it was bombed during a “gathering of the Crusaders to perform their polytheist rituals.”
Authorities said a total of 20 people were killed and over 70 others wounded in the blasts. The bombings prompted the police to impose a nationwide alert to pre-empt any acts of terrorism. But two Abu Sayyaf suicide bombers also attacked an army base in Sulu Indanan town in June and killed and wounded dozens of people.
The latest suicide attacks occurred during an extended martial law in the restive region and were largely blamed to lapses in security and intelligence failure by both the police and military. Last week, the military paraded 9 Abu Sayyaf fighters who surrendered to soldiers in Sulu.
The militants – Sharizmal Jumlani Tahil, Fhadzrimar Say-in Tahil, Julhamid Tirol, Haime Ahaban Sali, Haber Maang Ejong, Shedimar Jawali Askali, Lakkiyan Isirael Safari, Gapor Laja and Gajir Laja – surrendered to the 2nd Special Forces Battalion.
They handed over a pair of M16 automatic rifles, five M1 rifles and a pair of .45-caliber pistols. It said that 7 of the militant operated under different sub-leaders while the Lajas were members of the Ajang-Ajang kidnapping group of the Abu Sayyaf. It was unclear if they would be granted amnesty or set free after interrogation as part of the government’s reconciliation program for rebels. (Mindanao Examiner and Zamboanga Post.)
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